Dubai: From a man calling non-emergency number (901) in the middle of the night accusing his neighbour of poisoning his chicken to a woman calling for help when she found a bird with a broken wing on the beach, Dubai Police said they entertain any call even if it is strange and funny.

Major Dr Mohammad Ali Obaid, director of Dubai Police’s call centre in the command and control department, said the non-emergency number 901 received thousands of calls last year with strange requests from residents.

“A European woman called saying she was sad after she found a bird with a broken wing on Jumeirah Beach. She asked for an ambulance to treat the bird. We sent a police patrol and took the woman and the bird to a specialised treatment centre,” Major Dr Ali Obaid said.

One of the strangest calls was from a worried Arab mother who couldn’t find her seven-year-old son in his bed after midnight.

“Immediately, we sent a police patrol and searched the house and found the child hiding on the rooftop. The boy said that he didn’t want to go to school because he hadn’t finish his homework and was afraid of his teachers,” he added.

Most of the calls to 901 were about traffic fines, especially after the 50 per cent reduction in traffic fine payment announced last year. The procedure to get good conduct certificates was another sought-after service.

“One of the calls was from a man who raised chicken in his home. He found several of his chicken dead and wanted to open a case against his neighbours accusing them of poisoning his chicken after they asked him not to raise the chicken inside the residential area,” Major Dr Ali Obaid added.

“The funniest calls were from people asking to buy phone recharge credit or ordering a taxi. A funny call was from a child who lost his bicycle and asked to find it for him. We respond to all calls and guide the callers to proper channels,” he said.

Police urged the public to call 901 for non-emergency issues and 999 for emergency situations.